A unique formation, including all five of the programme’s flight test A400M next-generation airlifters, was flown by the Airbus Flight Test teams on Jun. 7, in Toulouse, France.
After the special formation flight, which did not include any particular maneuver or test, each aircraft returned to its individual activity: MSN1 performed handling quality evaluation; MSN2, wing pod hose stability tests; MSN3, engine tests; MSN4, pressurisation and oxygen tests; and MSN6, function and reliability tests.
David Cenciotti is a freelance journalist based in Rome, Italy. He is the Founder and Editor of “The Aviationist”, one of the world’s most famous and read military aviation blogs. Since 1996, he has written for major worldwide magazines, including Air Forces Monthly, Combat Aircraft, and many others, covering aviation, defense, war, industry, intelligence, crime and cyberwar. He has reported from the U.S., Europe, Australia and Syria, and flown several combat planes with different air forces. He is a former 2nd Lt. of the Italian Air Force, a private pilot and a graduate in Computer Engineering. He has written five books and contributed to many more ones.
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